From fossil fuels to the automotive industry, old line industries are on the front lines of recent sustainabe business job news.

In this month's Names in the News round up of big hires, promotions and other job news, Japanese automaker Nissan names its first sustainability chief and a former presidential candidate jumps into the smart city fray.

Who's news

Hitoshi Kawaguchi, Nissan Motor Co.

Amid an onslaught of change in the automotive industry — self-driving cars, the rise of ridesharing, the proliferation of connected vehicles — Japanese auto giant Nissan has named its first chief sustainability officer, former Nissan Senior Vice President Hitoshi Kawaguchi. In his previous role, he oversaw corporate social responsibility, global external and government affairs and communications in Japan.

Issam Dairanieh, The Global C02 Initiative

In the rush to draw down global emissions and slow global warming, one obvious but largely untapped resource is rising to the fore as a potential solution: carbon. The man tapped to head The Global CO2 Initiative announced earlier this year during the World Economic Forum, which aims to "capture 10 percent of global CO2 emissions and turn them into valuable products"? Issam Dairanieh, head of oil titan BP’s corporate venture capital team.

Martin O'Malley, MetroLab

The former Baltimore Mayor and short-lived 2016 presidential candidate is parlaying his government experience into a new role at the helm of an organization chasing the budding smart city industry, MetroLab Network. Pitched as a convening body for government, academia, NGOs, businesses and other stakeholders, O'Malley will serve as a senior fellow and convene and chair an advisory committee.

Patricia Espinosa, UNFCCC

Former Mexican Ambassador Patricia Espinosa has been tapped by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to take the helm of the international body's climate arm, the UNFCCC. Espinosa's appointment comes at a key time for the group, with implementation looming for the Paris Agreement brokered by departing UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christina Figueres.